Memorandum: Human body (dead from plague) and dead rats found in the same basement room. Upon March 21, 1913, a Filipino laborer living at 140 Calle Perla, Tondo, was found dead from bubonic plague.
Upon careful investigation and search of the premises the following findings were disclosed:
One rat, large, mummified and dry and therefore dead for at least one week, was found clinging to a bamboo wall just back of the cot upon which the dead human body was found.
In a section of bamboo, in a timber constituting the ceiling of the basement and also the upper part of the door frame, a rat, dead and dried up, was found. This section was the end section of the timber which was partly covered with nipa thatch, with which the sides of the house were covered. The ends of a number of the outside rafters (bamboo) were found to be gnawed through.
BAMBOO HOUSE SUPPORTS SEALED WITH CEMENT TO PREVENT ENTRANCE OF RATS (MANILA PLAGUE CAMPAIGN)
Similar conditions were found in adjoining houses and in one case a live rat was driven out of a nest in the bamboo.
Sample of Detailed Orders Issued.—Sample of detailed orders issued by Medical Inspector in Charge of Plague Suppression. Similar orders were issued whenever new districts were entered or new work undertaken.
Memorandum Order. Effective March 25, 1913:
Beginning to-day, 13 men under Assistant Inspector Parás, will commence cleaning operations at C. Ostra, extending from the Bay to C. Sande and will clean towards C. Moriones. They will be provided with a disinfecting pump and will disinfect the ground surfaces wherever disturbed, outdoors and indoors. Cleaning is to be done in the most thorough manner possible, searching meanwhile for rat nests and rat harbors; re-piling wood, tiles, stones and merchandise; moving all movable goods out of doors in their search for rats and rat-holes or nests. All goods are to be piled above ground at an elevation of at least one foot. All bamboo beds and bamboo rafters and parts of the house (in the basements) made of bamboo or of double walls are to be thoroughly investigated for rats. All foodstuff attractive for rats is to be placed in covered boxes or galvanized iron cans, tin cans or barrels, with tight-fitting covers. Special attention is to be paid to straw, hay, shavings, grain, rat-holes, and food.